Ten and a Half
by Sobe15
Summary: Stephanie Plum, the almostbutnotquite badass bounty hunter is on the prowl again. Conflicts arise and new FTAs don't really want to go to jail. All in the life of the Bomshell Bounty Hunter. Rating may change. Please R&R!
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer **I am not Janet Evanovich. I did not create any of these characters other than the occaisional skip.

**Spoilers/Warnings/etc** Mini spoilers through ten. Probably no smut but I don't really have the whole story set out yet.

It was another sweltering hot day in Trenton, and I was starting to get tired of the heat. Also, I was starting to sweat. I never like to sweat because my hair gets frizzy, and I lose the look of 'cool' hot. When I'm in my car (for now the trusty refrigerator on wheels, affectionally named Big Blue), whatever skin I have exposed starts to stick to the smooth seats. And today I was exposing some skin.

Pulling into the office where I work, I didn't bother to lock the car. Secretly I was hoping someone was going to steal it, or at least firebomb it. Then I wouldn't have an excuse as to why I don't want to drive it. But anyone I knew could vouch for me, the car just wasn't _in_.

Lula and Connie were behind the desk. Connie was shuffling through some papers and looking rather flustered. Lula seemed to be sleeping, her head on the desk and starting to drool. I gave Connie a '_what's up?_' look but she just shook her head.

"She came in late and since then she's been out."

I took a few steps up to the desk and bent down to see Lula. Yep, definately asleep. And snoring lightly. I assumed that she hadn't been asleep that awful long, because I have heard Lula when she gets into a deep sleep. It sounds like something big and solid had gotten jammed into the garbage disposal. I gave her a poke with two fingers. She didn't wake up or break her snoring. I just mentally shrugged and turned back to Connie.

"Any new skips today?"

"Just one," she said and reached behind her, retrieving a file and handing it out to me. I took it and opened it up. Luke Roz. I had never heard of the name and didn't know what originality the last name was, but I could ask around if he didn't appear to be home. The burg grapevine had hardly ever failed to know of details that were either juicy or horribly juicy. He had been charged with domestic violence, and it seemed that the wife still lived with him. Mentally sighing, I wondered why women would still stick by their husbands after they beat them up. If Morelli ever took a fist to me I would kick him in the balls and step right out of there.

Omigod, did I just refer to Morelli as husband material? God help me, I needed to get out more. I definately didn't want to think about this now.

Joe Morelli is a Trenton cop and a damn good one if you ask me. He is also my on again/off again boyfriend, and sometimes, once in a blue moon, he could be my fiance. You never know with men, and you could never tell with me, either. One moment I'm happy to be single, living in my apartment with my roomie and best friend on four paws, Rex the hamster, and the next I'm looking through the baby aisle out of the corner of my eye when I go shopping for my daily recommended supply of Tastycakes. Girl's gotta have her priorities. Mine are just jumbled and three sheets to the wind.

Speaking of Wind, just as I was about ready to leave, Lula woke up with a snort and looked up, and the hairs on the back of my neck rose. Connie looked behind me to the door with her hand on her chest, mouth very slightly ajar. So either there was a ninja-samurai weilding a sword and wearing a mask that had just passed the building, or Ranger entered.

Ranger is another one of the men in my life. Don't worry, there is just two, but it's complicated. Ranger has been my friend and mentor ever since I started my job as a bond enforcement agent, and he has never let me down in being the big mysterious man that he is. Ranger likes his privacy, but I had once 'accidentally' found and lived in his apartment when he was away for a few weeks. When he found me there, he didn't really blow his top, because he had been informed firsthand of my doings (darn cameras...). I had stayed in his building for a few days later, (on his couch! Unfortunately, though, because he has the softest, coziest bed I had ever slept in) until whatever danger I was in at the time had passed.

It was the latter, which was proven as a warm hand rested itself on the base of my neck and a toned body leaned into me.

"Babe." he said with a corner-of-the-mouth-tipping smile that was _so_ Ranger, then turned to Connie and handed her a body receipt. "I just dropped off Mitch Reynolds," he informed her and she immediately stooped to write a check out for him.

Ranger and me, we're bounty hunters. Ranger is a much better one than I am, though, but sometimes I get lucky. Whenever we get these SOB's to the police station and get them rebonded, then we get out money. Cool system, right? That is, unless the bondee (or FTA-Failure To Appear) doesn't want to go. I've personally been shot at countless times, rolled in piles of garbage, bounced someone off my windshild, been almost raped three times (mabye more...I guess I try not to remember) and been in a few not-so-accidents with my cars. And speaking of cars, almost every one I own either gets blown up, stolen, or crashed into. But not Big Blue. Big Blue could come out of a nuclear bomb raid without a scar. I'm almost certain.

I turned to leave and was immediately followed by the local man of mystery himself. He caught me by the shoulder and I turned to him, wondering what he wanted now. It wasn't all that long ago when Ranger and me spent one glorious night together, when me and Joe were kapoots. But after then, it seemed that Ranger had more pressing matters, and at nearly first light, he was off to rid the world of bad guys once more.

"Babe, I get the feeling that you were avoiding me."

Tell me about it. Ranger and I have an odd thing going here, and every time he touches me I feel liquid fire going down to parts unknown. I'm a girl who values commitment. I do not want to cheat on Joe.

I remind myself. I do not want to cheat on Joe. I do _not_ want to cheat on Joe.

Although Ranger is incredibly sexy and his muscles are toned and rock hard. Morelli has a libido that I can hardly keep up with, but Ranger...is a slightly different case. I don't know a whole hell of alot about Ranger's libido. Though he is great in bed, the one time we had. I can admit that freely in my head without feeling _too much_ guilt.

"Not avoiding you. Just being cautious. And I really have to go."

Ranger wasn't buying it. "You have no place to go. Are you afraid of being in the same room as me for too long?"

I looked into his chocolate tinted eyes and saw he was grinning and poking fun at me. He had gotten me there, I had no place to go, really. Just back to my apartment for lunch and to feed Rex. At least I had Rex as an excuse. Not that I would like to voice it.

Ranger must of saw my hesitation because he gave me a slightly more corner-of-the-mouth-tipping smile than usual, and nudged me towards the alley in between the office and the other buildings. The last few times he had pushed me over there we had kissed and I had melted in his arms, but this time I was ready. I could stand it as long as I thought of something else. I couldn't get out of the alley because Ranger was always holding me, and there was no way I could get out of Ranger's grip if he didn't want me to.

Okay, I'm weak! Ranger touched his lips to mine and as I opened my mouth to protest and try to keep my sanity, he inserted his tongue and touched mine. And that's about where I melt. All the time. _God, I'm such a wimp_!

And just as soon as he was there, he was gone again. _Dammit_, I thought. Why does he always do that to me?


	2. Chapter 2

I drove the buick to my apartment parking lot and headed inside. Pausing at the door, I slowly creaked it open and pressed my ear to the gap in the space to hear. The only sound I heard was Rex shuffling in his bedding, than silence. I suppose it was safe. This has started to become a habit of mine, unfortunately, to check my apartment. Quite often, many bad guys made themselves home on my couch, watching TV, or leaving 'presents' for me. Despite the locks I had on my door.

Since it was all clear I headed to the counter in the kitchen and deposited my keys by the cupboards, pulling out peanut butter and bread. This was my lunch, a literal peanut butter sandwich. But peanut butter sandwiches are good, no matter how plain they may seem.

I dropped a crust with peanut butter on it into Rex's cage and he stuck his nose out to see what he had been blessed. Then he scurried out, grabbed it with his paws, stuffed it in his cheeks, and returned to the sanctity of his soup can without so much as a thank you.

How rude is my roomie?

Although it was afternoon and I really should be looking for Luke Roz, I plopped on my couch and tried to see if there was anything on TV. Nothing. Sigh. How is it that TV has gone down the drain since I was growing up? I didn't pop in Ghostbusters like I usually would because I wasn't in a state. That movie is reserved for my depressing life emergency pick-me-up. Now I was just bored. So I hauled myself up off the couch. And decided to take a crack at looking for this Mr. Roz, the wife beater.

He lived on Concord Street, nearing the borders of the Burg. I parked my car in the street two houses down, not chancing he saw me and recognized my car.

I knocked on the door, knowing someone was home. The sounds of television were dancing out the cracked window, although the shades were down and I couldn't see inside. I knocked again, and was starting to get impatient when a woman opened the door. She had a whitewashed face, dull eyes, and looked as if she were the wife of Luke Roz. She was wearing a long sleeved shirt, more than likely to hide the bruises that ran down her arms.

"Yes?"

I gave her my card and asked for her husband, giving the standard comment.

"Your husband missed his court date, and we need to reschedule. Is he here?"

She looked scared now. Probably she didn't want to divulge her husbands whereabouts, in case he came for her. I looked her directly in the eyes and spoke again.

"Then I can take him down to the police station and he will stay there until his next court date."

The wife seemed to relax slightly after that, but there was still uncertanty etched in the lines of her face. I gave her a friendly smile and she broke down with a small sigh of surrender. I guess I can be pretty persuasive, if it comes down to it. Yep, that's me.

"Alright...he's at work now, but he usually comes home at five. If you come back he'll be here."

I nodded and thanked her, and promised I'd be back by five. Then I got into my lovely '53 and drove off back to the office, lacking of anything else to do.

Lula was on the poor excuse for a couch looking through a file and Connie was behind the desk, lounging, not doing any kind of filing-the paperwork or her nails. When I walked in, Lula looked up and smiled at me.

"Did you bring anything to eat? I'm starved."

"No, I just came from Luke Roz's house. His wife is scared to death of him."

"Damn wifebeater. Did you haul his motherfucking ass down to the station?"

"Not yet, he was at work, I'm going back at five to take him in."

"Humph. I could help you take him down. You never know with them wifebeaters. They could turn on you."

As much as I like when Lula helps me with a takedown, it cuts my pay, and there's always the chance that a window gets broken, she goes in the wrong house, or she sits on someone and breaks something. Not that Luke Roz didn't have it coming, but I didn't think I could stand the cop jokes I would definately receive when I dropped off a battered wifebeater at their feet.

"No, I think I got it. The wife seemed glad to get rid of him, she could help."

"Your ass." she replied and turned back to her file. I was wondering who the file was on, but I didn't press into it. I wasn't sure I wanted to know. Alright, I did. Curiosity was never a bad trait.

"Who's in the file?"

Lula turned and grinned, slapping the file closed. "For me to know and you to find out."

I sighed. Unless Lula really wanted me to know who's file that was, I would never know. But, that's fine with me. I can deal. Just need a doughnut.

"Alright. Fine. Don't tell me. I need a doughnut."

"Grab me a jelly!" Connie said, looking up from her filing. I nodded and was about to leave when Lula pitched in.

"You betta grab me some or you're gonna be dead where you stand."


End file.
